R2-D2 Projector / Awsome

BigDog. My next dog?

Boston Dynamics is working to build my next dog, and DARPA.mil is funding it. Not really.

But check this crazy thing out - it's called the BigDog and it got BITE. You can see why the military is partially funding the project. Imagine how scared you'd be to sit around a fire with all of your buddies from the axis-of-evil club in the middle of the dessert if you knew a bunch of BigDog units with laser guided guns and titanium teeth were running around looking for you with infrared eyes and super sniffers. [via]

I Want an iPhone - David Pogue - NYTimes

iPhone - Can you hear it now?

A next generation web browser and UI really DOES need a next generation network to deliver the next generation mobile web.

iPhone - 700,000 Sold Over Weekend

Apple over the weekend sold more than 700,000 iPhones to rocket past analyst predictions and shatter AT&T's record by selling more iPhones in three days than Motorola's RAZR did in its first month.

The iPhone Review

If you're going to read one iPhone review, read this one.
iPhone Review - Engadget

Steve Gillmor On iPhone

Steve Gillmor's quick-take on the iPhone. Happy or not? Watch the embedded video below and find out. By the way, I'm loving my Motorolla Q on the Verizon network. The iPhone might be great but the network counts for a lot - complaints from switching Verizon customers, accustomed to Verizon's great network, are already coming in. For me, a network with excellent sound quality, coverage, and reliability is more important than the phone. Can you hear me now? I'm not knocking the phone, I'm knocking the network it's tethered to.

Motorola Q vs iPhone

I ordered a Motorola Q on Tuesday from my cellphone provider - Verizon. The Q is coming my way via FedEx, I should have it by tomorrow. The Q is replacing my Motorola RAZR, which I'm quite fond of, but needs at the office necessitate the upgrade. The upgrade also means I won't be getting an iPhone any time soon. Some of you might find this surprising considering my recent iPhone posting frenzy.

Why did I opt for the Q over an iPhone?

1. Cost. The Q, $179 - the iPhone, $499, or $599. 2. Proven track record. The Q is a great phone and a reasonably good PDA - it has the track record to prove it. The iPhone might suck. Even if it doesn't V 2.0 will be better. I'm going to give Apple some time to make it better and cost less. 3. Windows Ecosystem. I live in the Windows world and so does the Q - it remains to be seen how well the iPhone will do in a Windows world. 4. Verizon. Verizon provides the best all-around service of any carrier I've ever used. The phones work, I get great coverage, they don't drop calls, and their customer service is excellent. Switching from Verizion to AT&T (which I've had bad experiences with) for an iPhone isn't worth it. 5. Zimbra. We're switching to a Zimbra mail setup at the office - I know the Q supports Zimbra Mobile - the iPhone may not. 6. Microsoft Outlook. I spend a lot of time in Microsoft Outlook. The Q has great support for Outlook - the iPhone may not.

I'm still a big fan of Apple's products. I have an iPod and I use it almost everyday. I still really like the iPhone and I hope it's great. I'm just waiting for a V 2.0 that's better (more storage, better carrier options, a replaceable/extendable battery) and less expensive. The 1st iPod shipped in 2001 with 5g of storage - today, for the same money, you get 80g of storage and a much better product. I'm going to wait - at least a year. More to come on my Moto Q experience.

Update 06/21/07

See Apple already working on cheaper variants of iPhone 

iPhone Optically Excellent and Energized - Now in Hybrid ; )

CUPERTINO, California - June 18, 2007 - Apple today announced that iPhone will deliver significantly longer battery life when it ships on June 29 than was originally estimated when iPhone was unveiled in January. iPhone will feature up to 8 hours of talk time, 6 hours of Internet use, 7 hours of video playback or 24 hours of audio playback. In addition, iPhone will feature up to 250 hours - more than 10 days - of standby time. Apple also announced that the entire top surface of iPhone, including its stunning 3.5-inch display, has been upgraded from plastic to optical-quality glass to achieve a superior level of scratch resistance and optical clarity.

Mac Rumors Featuring iPhone Details from AT&T Traing Manual

On Friday Mac Rumors published a series of, what appear to be, scanned copies of an AT&T iPhone training manual. They do a good job of summarizing the scans (so you won't have to wreck your eyes trying to read them) and the scanned copies are available as well. Apparently, someone that goes by cindynjgirl79 sent them the scans. The Google search on cindynjgirl79 produces some interesting results - maybe this is cindynjgirl79's MySpace page - it's 3rd in the results. There aren't going to be a lot of surprises left when the iPhone ships on June 29th.

Apple Jesus Phone

Jeff Han Unveils High-Resolution Multi-Touch Computer

iPhone from Apple Does it All!

Folding UMPCs?

UMPC sales have been lackluster this year - they started shipping in March. The 1st year (well almost) of the UMPC feels a lot like the 1st year of the Tablet PC - again, lackluster. I hold Microsoft responsible for my over-use of the world "lackluster." Microsoft needs to find and crown a Marketing Czar that can give Jobs a run for his money. They've got the hardware, the software, and the people talent - what they lack is the marketing talent. All the hardware innovation in the world isn't going to do it - even Fujitsu's folding UMPC will go mostly un-noticed.

Taking the Origami principle to heart, Fujitsu reckon they've got the ultimate UMPC licked, with this swish design for a laptop which literally folds in half to fit your pocket. >> T3

Help Me Buy a Laptop

Leah Culver, who works for Instructables, came up with an ingenious idea to get herself a brand new MacBook Pro - for FREE. Smart, very smart. Congrats. Check out her laptop. Video of Leah etching her new laptop.

Zune Failing

I really think Microsoft's new media player, the Zune, is going to flop. All the marketing dollars in the world aren't going to displace the iPod - at least not this time. Gary Stein recently commented on something that happened on CNN related to the marketing challenge Microsoft faces with Zune. Zune is going to fail because marketing products isn't one of Microsoft's strengths. Just look at the Zune website - the fake lifestyle shots are transparent and an instant turn-off for the demographic Microsoft needs most at this point - the kids.

I watched CNN this morning and Soledad O'Brien literally interrupted the tech-biz reporter, who was talking about the Zune, to extoll the virtues of her new, $70 iPod Shuffle. The next time the story came through the cycle, she had gotten her iPod out of her office and demonstrated how cool it was that you could clip it, and essentially un-sold the Zune, and pitched the iPod. -- Gary Stein's post

Engadget Fan Boy? Tour Ryan Block's Pad

Tour Gadget Geek’s Home | ScobleShow: Videoblog about geeks, technology, and developers

Are you an Engadget fan boy or fan girl? If you are, you'll enjoy this video tour through Ryan Block's San Francisco apartment.

HPI Robot

Sweet! HPI (Japanese Company), popular for their R/C cars, is preparing to release a DIY robot kit. Movie 1, Movie 2

The G-Robots GR-001, like the holy diver himself, stands just 8.9-inches and 1.99-pounds wrapped in a skin of high-impact resin. Assembly takes about 2 hours after which this walker can be programmed from your computer via old-school RS232 and controlled via a 2.4GHz wireless remote. Let's just hope it comes with a USB-to-serial adapter for the required ¥199,980 or about $1,018 of that god fearin' green. Uh, azphinctersezwhat? - Engadget

Highgear Summit Watch

I clicked the "Buy Now" now button next to another Highgear altimeter watch (1st Highgear) a couple of weeks ago on Sierra Trading Post and I just love it. It's a Highgear Summit, last year's model, but I got it for about half of what this year's model would have cost me.

I don't really use the bulk of the more advanced features (altimeter, barometer, compass, thermometer) but having the compass makes it easier for me to back-up the "we're not lost" position with my wife and it's a great starter for conversations about the weather ;)

Motorola HS820

Are Bluetooth headsets for cell phones cool? What's a Bluetooth headset? It's that doohicky you occasionally see sticking out of some dudes ear that kind of makes him look like a character from the movie Tron or a lost Star-trek fan. I'm just not sure - living in Eugene Oregon I don't always have the best perspective on what's in and what isn't. Why do I ask? Because I bought one for my Bluetooth enabled Motorolla Razr and I can't bring myself to wear it in public. Maybe it's just because my ears are a little on the big side of Dumbo ears.

I bought the Motorola HS820 from Amazon for $25 - a good price considering I've seen the same headset for sale here in town and on-line for as much as $75. You need to buy it from the "used and new" section to get that price. The sound quality is excellent and establishing the connection with the Razr was straightforward. When I press the little button with the phone icon on it the Razr's voice activation features come to life and I can make a call without even touching the phone. I love the headset and for $25 it's a no-brainer add-on for your cell phone. Great for driving and talking in the car - I use mine while I commute on my bike.

I want Search on my 30g 5g iPod

» iPod enhancements withheld from previous hardware | The Apple Core | ZDNet.com

I'm pissed! I updated my 30g 5th generation iPod, via the new iTunes 7.0 interface, last night expecting the iPod update to add the new Search feature to my iPod interface and guess what - no love from Apple. The linked ZDNet article (above) talks a bit about the frustration I'm describing. By the way, I think there's an error in the article. The author says, "The problem I have is that half of these new software features are available on previous iPods - including the just-discontinued iPod 5g - despite the fact that the hardware is almost exactly the same." I think he meant to say, The problem I have is that half of these new software features aren't available on previous iPods - including the just-discontinued iPod 5g - despite the fact that the hardware is almost exactly the same."

There better be a hardware reason for not pushing the Search feature out to my iPod. If Apple is expecting me to upgrade my hardware for a "should have happened a long time ago" feature like this I'm done buying iPods.

My reaction to Apple's announcements

Thomas Hawk's commentary on Apple's announcement's (watch) Tuesday mirrors my own. I got a kick out of reading his recent post on the subject today.

Someone Check Steve Job's Pipe, I Don't Think That's Tobacco He's Smoking in There

Apple is obviously continuing their push into the livingroom but IMO they're a bit late to the game. iTV feels like too little too late and it isn't even available yet. On the other hand, Apple wasn't the 1st one on the MP3 player seen either - but they delivered a better mouse trap and it paid off, in a big way, the same thing could happen in the livingroom. For me, for now - NetFlix, Tivo, and my flatpanel Sony Wega TV are working just fine. I don't even have HDTV yet. There is a real problem in the livingroom that needs to be solved. What's that? Too many wires, too much complexity, too many choices - people just want to watch and listen. Maybe Apple can solve that problem.

Related: NY Times Apple Plans to Inhabit the Livingroom 

Canon A620

I recently newegged a Canon A620 and I'm oh so glad I did. I'm the proud owner a Canon SLR as well and I love it but I don't always feel like taking it with me everywhere I go - sometimes it's just difficult, sometimes I don't want to risk breaking the thing. I needed something smaller and less expensive. It's a lot easier to grab and go with the A620 and for less than $250 it's feature packed. Highlights include: 7.1 MP, movie (with sound) recording that's pretty slick, tons of built-in family friendly (like Kids and Pets) automatic shooting modes, a flip out LCD screen, zoom, it goes on and on. Read the detailed DP Review of the A620 if you really want to get into the details. Great value - hard to believe what you get for less than $250 - oh and that included a 2GB SD card - took advantage of a NewEgg combo deal.

My Lenovo 3000 N100 - Flop or hot?

So I ordered a Lenovo 3000 N100 laptop from NewEgg- it arrived yesterday and it's leaving tomorrow for a trip to the Lenovo hospital for screwed up laptops. Why? I can't get the display the work properly - the text is garbled beyond recognition - has been from the moment I started it up.

I was on the phone last night at 11:30 PM with Lenovo support in GA trying to troubleshoot the problem but that was a dead-end. We checked BIOS versions, driver versions etc. but they ended up putting a box in the mail for me so I'll be packing my new laptop up tomorrow for what will hopefully be a quick visit to the Lenovo hospital. I will say that Lenovo's support services have been good so far. The website is easy to use, the pre-installed software is useful, and drivers and updates are easy to access. It was fairly easy to get a support technician on the phone, she was here in the U.S. and fairly competent although I think we got to the "send it back" solution a little too quickly - it was late so I'm willing to look past this - 24 hours real-person support is pretty cool.

I'll update this repost when the 3000 N100 returns from the hospital. I bought this laptop because it was well reviewed and Chris Pirillo had nice things to say about Lenovo. 

Update: I should have updated this a while ago. My Lenovo promptly returned from the Lenovo Hospital for Screwed-up Laptops and perfect working order - it took 3 to 4 business days for the to complete the work and have it back in my hands. Painless. Big fan of Lenovo and loving the machine. Still has my recommendation. Beautiful screen. 

Smooth Creations - Customize Your Gadget

[[ created by Smooth Creations ]]

Spend some bank on customizing your gadget today! Smooth Creations, an Oregon company, is taking gadget customization to the next level by painting prized laptops, Ipods, and other gadgets. Check out some of their work - pretty cool. Personally, I'd have a hard time justifying the expense - the shelf-life of even my most prized gadget is less than twelve months and that's being generous but I can see a healthy niche market for aspiring artists developing here.

Reading list:
Mitch Ratcliffe My laptop, my tricked out ride
c|net Yearning for color on laptops
Smooth Creations Home

my iPod 5g - Continued

I ordered my 5g iPod back in October and my 1st impressions were great. It wasn't my 1st iPod, I was upgrading from a 4g model. I'm still happy with my black 5g 40G iPod but I've got some gripes.

5g iPod Grips from a Recommender:

• It does scratch too easily. I don't support the idea of suing Apple over scratching (or potential for hearing loss) but they should be working to remedy this. I hope it doesn't come out someday that they engineered scratching into the iPod to support the iPod ecosystem. Cleaning up a scratched iPod
• Watching video on the iPod isn't something you want to do often. My wife and I have been watching the new Battlestar Galactica series on my iPod (we don't get the SciFi channel) and it was fun for a few episodes but it's getting old.
• Battery life, especially if you're watching video, is terrible - you can just barely watch a full-length movie on a full charge and that's with a young battery.
• It takes too long to start up - I like looking at the Apple logo but it's getting old too.
• $400 is too much for a high-tech walkman! Really, MP3 players should cost about $100.

I'd still recommend an iPod to a friend but there's room for improvement in the device. Apple better integrate a phone into the iPod soon or the iPod will eventually go the way of the stand-alone PDA. Still a fan - for now.

iBuzz

iBuzz, the iPod sex toy that has already caused a buzz in The New York Times, Harper's Index and Wired.com, will be launched in the US on 24 February - the birthday of Apple boss Steve Jobs. - Press Release

Wow, they really do make just about every accessory imagineable for the iPod. The iBuzz from Love Labs will put the bounce back into your step. Did Jobs think the iBuzz would be part of his iPod Ecosystem?

TrueCrypt

Swissbit - SwissMemory USB Victorinox Multiple Choice

Swissbit Swissmemory USB Victorinox Datasheet PDF

I'm not a big fan of USB flash drives - there are a lot of others ways to move big files around and they usually feel too fragile to be trusted. The Swissbit Swissmemory USB Victorinox caught my attention on Engadget because it looks cool and it sports a 2GB capacity - see the press release. Still not a fit for my needs but I can see why students and travelers might like it.

They're including the usual scissors, knife, nail file, and screw driver on the rubyRED and retroALOX versions, while the rubyRED version -- which is looking a tad chubby these days -- also adds a ballpoint pen and an LED light for extra geek cred. You can even pop out the drive part for flying, since the TSA isn't so hot on knives these days, or just make a run for it at the security gate and see how far you get.
via - Engadget

My "Wired" Series 2 Tivo

I've had a Tivo for over two years (1st post) now and I have to say it's still one of my favorite gadgets. It's one of the few gadgets my wife and I both see eye-to-eye on - the Tivo saves us (busy parents) precious minutes everyday. This week I finally managed to "Wire" my Tivo - it's now connected to my home network and the Internet.

Until recently, I just didn't have a reason to justify the expense or the effort required to run wire to the closet where my Tivo lives - it was connected to my analog phone line (to retrieve the TV schedule) and that was good enough. TiVoToGo, Tivo multimedia features, on-line scheduling, and other features supported by the Series 2 Tivo weren't enough to motivate me to "wire" my Tivo.

Tivo recently announced that the Tivo Desktop (software that lets you transfer stuff to and from your Tivo over your home network) will soon support video transfer to the Apple Ipod - this feature announcement  was my motivation for wiring my Tivo.

Wiring my Tivo took about as much money and effort as I thought it would. After doing some research, and making a failed trip to Best Buy (poor inventory AKA Worst Buy), I settled on and purchased a D-Link USB 2.0 Fast Ethernet Adapter – I ordered it on-line because Best Buy doesn’t have any inventory. Did I mention that Best Buy doesn’t have any inventory. The Ethernet Adapter was required to connect my Tivo to my home network – for some reason the Tivo doesn’t sport an Ethernet port, instead it has two USB ports. Connecting the Tivo to my network and the Internet was as easy as plugging in the adapter, connecting it to an Ethernet cable (which is connected to a router, etc. etc.), and adjusting a setting within the Tivo Setup. My Tivo is now more powerful than ever and I’m anxiously awaiting the new version of Tivo Desktop which should make it easy for me to transfer video content to my sexy little Apple Ipod.

By the way, I don’t regret my decision to put this off for two years – I haven’t used any of the existing features yet – I just want to transfer video content to my Apple Ipod.
 

my ipod 5g

I ordered my ipod with video the minute it was available - the 1st hour to be precise. The verdict - love it! The video quality is amazing. Reviews: Read - PC Magazine Read - ArsTechnica Read - New York Times Read - Wall Street Journal Read - USA Today Read - Playlist Read - PC World Read - Personal Computer World Read - CBS News Read - Personal Tech Pipeline Read - iLounge Read - CNET [Via] engadget

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